Sympathy for the Devil
by Californicate
Summary: Just another cliched DG fic. Draco Malfoy makes a bet with Ron: He has to get a girl by Valentine's Day. Easy, right? Wrong. PG-13 for language I guess...although it really isn't that strong.
1. In which a bet is made

Disclaimer: *puts hands behind back and recites* I do not own Harry Potter or any characters you might recognize in this story. All I own is the plot so don't sue humble little me.  
  
It was Saturday and Draco Malfoy, having nothing to do, ambled lazily down the hallway toward the Great Hall. There he found many people hugging their friends goodbye and getting ready to go home for the holidays. Draco rolled his eyes as he passed a girl in tears hugging her friend fiercely. He scanned the Hall, looking for someone to taunt for entertainment. His eyes rested upon Potter, Weasley and that bushy haired chipmunk, Granger.  
  
"Well, bye Ron, bye Harry! See you!" Granger was saying. Then she leaned over and kissed Ron on the cheek. He flushed furiously. As she walked away, Draco strode up to the insufferable duo.  
  
"So, Weasley, finally got yourself a girlfriend?" He drawled.  
  
"Oh piss off, Malfoy. She's not my girlfriend. And besides, I bet you couldn't get a girl if you tried," Ron retorted.  
  
"You'd be willing to bet on that, would you Weasley?" Draco smirked. "How much?"  
  
"Ten Galleons. You've got to get the girl by Valentine's Day."  
  
Draco whistled. "Sure you can afford that much? You might have to sell your house, you know, when I win."  
  
Ron reddened. "Yeah right, I'll be that much richer when I win," he said.  
  
"Believe what you will, Weasel, but you know I'll win." And with that, Draco walked off, leaving Ron clutching his wand angrily.  
  
Eating his lunch, Draco browsed the hall, looking for a worthy specimen. There was really no one worth dating in this God forsaken school. At least, there was absolutely no one in his own house, so he would half to settle with someone from another house. Suddenly he grasped an idea. There was that girl; Weasley's 6th year little sister, what was her name? Ginny? He could get the little redhead brat to fall head over heels with him, and show Weasley that he could get anyone, including even his little sister! It was perfect. Besides, she wasn't horrible looking, so at least Draco wouldn't get such a bad reputation. After everyone had finished their lunch and the Great Hall was empty but for a few people doing homework, Draco slid off the bench and strolled over to the Gryffindor table, where Ginny was diligently scribbling things onto parchment, her curly mass of red hair draped over her shoulder (a/n: I don't care if you think it's not curly, deal with it).  
  
"My, Weasley, your looking tolerable today," Draco said coolly. Flattery with a hint of sarcasm. Ginny looked up and a look of surprise rapidly flitted across her face before she quickly quenched it and made her face an icy, expressionless mask.  
  
"Draco Malfoy is deigning to speak to humble, plain little me? I'm honored," she said, feigning shock. Nobody knew it, or nobody bothered to figure it out, but Ginny Weasley was actually a very clever, witty girl who could be biting when someone insulted her. She too favored sarcasm, as did Draco.  
  
Draco tsked and shook his head. "You should always accept compliments when given to you, considering how few you must get."  
  
Ginny, who had trained herself to be emotionless, would have been angry and quite annoyed but instead she stuffed the emotion deep inside of her.  
  
"Unless you've got something interesting to inform me of, like that you're leaving Hogwarts and never coming back, I beg you to go plague someone else," she said. Draco walked away, scowling, unable to come up with a biting remark. This girl was good. But no matter, she had won this little battle, but he would win the war. 


	2. Ginny and Draco meet again!

Disclaimer: I would think of a witty disclaimer but my brain isn't exactly functioning properly. I don't own Harry Potter or any other characters you might recognize in this story. Now you can't sue, you psychotic lawyer. I know you're out to get me!  
  
Draco Malfoy gazed out the window of the Slytherin common room. Snow was thick in the air, like dust. Everything was covered in a gleaming white blanket of untouched -except for a few footprints here and there- snow. The lake was frozen over with very thick ice, it seemed, and some students were trying to ice skate on it. Draco rolled his eyes as one girl fell on the ice, laughing merrily. What was so funny about falling on the ice? Why was everyone so merry? Christmas cheer, they all claimed, well he'd give them Christmas cheer. This "Christmas cheer" concept would be more believable if everyone wasn't so damn cheery throughout the whole year, excluding Christmas time. Feeling restless, Draco gathered his textbooks got off the couch he was sitting on. Immediately, Crabbe and Goyle sprang up.  
  
"No, you guys stay here to make sure nobody sabotages my things in the dorm," Draco said to them.  
  
"Sure thing, Draco. What's sabotage?" asked Goyle stupidly. Draco rolled his eyes once again and did not answer, but walked out of the common room and headed in the direction of the library.  
  
~  
  
Ginny sat in the library working hard on a Potions essay. She was so immersed in it that she didn't see Draco swagger up to her.  
  
"Working hard, I see. Now that's a first," he said sarcastically.  
  
"Do you find entertainment in stalking me? You seem to be doing it more than usual," she said without looking up. A smirk played across his lips.  
  
"Stalking you? I'd hardly call it that. I'm simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Besides, I only came to check out this book." Draco picked up a random book that had been lying on the table. Ginny read the title.  
  
"Gryffindors: A history of their great deeds? Do I sense treachery?"  
  
Draco quickly glanced at the cover. "Oh no, you see, I plan to burn it later," he said. Ginny raised an eyebrow.  
  
"So why did you come here, if not to stalk me?" she inquired.  
  
"Oh, because I am positively smitten with you and wish your hand in marriage. To do homework, brilliant one, why else would I be in the library?" he brandished his textbooks in her face.  
  
"Take a seat then, if you insist on staying," Ginny replied. They worked in silence for a while, then Draco broke it by asking,  
  
"Are your friends gone for the holiday?" Ginny looked at him with mild surprise.  
  
"Well yes, if you must know, Tina went home to America and Sarah's staying with her Muggle parents. And don't you dare make a snide remark about Muggle-borns; I don't want to hear it. So why are you staying at Hogwarts, anyway?"  
  
"My father had urgent business to attend to, I couldn't come. What about that-" Draco paused, reminding himself that he had to stay on Ginny's good side and not upset her. "What about Granger, aren't you two friends?" he asked.  
  
Ginny rolled her eyes in disgust. "Are you kidding me? I loathe Hermione. She thinks I'm the little sister she never had, in other words, she thinks she can boss me around. She's such a know-it-all, too. Whenever I attempt to ask her for help on homework, she goes "Oh, you didn't know that?" like I'm stupid or something. And she thinks my whole world revolves around her. She just doesn't understand that, contrary to popular belief, I actually have a life." Ginny finished and took a deep breath. "Why did I just tell you all that? You'll probably tell her or use it as blackmail."  
  
"No, I promise I won't." But that would be a good idea, except that Granger probably wouldn't believe me, he thought.  
  
Ginny laughed derisively. "A Slytherin's honor? Like my dad says, 'Only trust a Slytherin as far as you can throw them, if you can get close enough to even pick them up.'"  
  
"Ah, very wise. Your father seems like a regular sage," Draco said unenthusiastically. "If only he were paid for his wisdom, you might be able to afford some better robes."  
  
Unable to help herself, Ginny reddened and clenched her quill. "Don't you talk about my dad. He works harder than your father, and at least he doesn't make a living from threatening people," she spat.  
  
Draco should have stopped there, but his first instinct was to fight back.  
  
"You shouldn't talk about things you don't know about, it'll get you in trouble one of these days. Anyway, at least my father makes a reasonable sum of money. What, is your father too noble to make a sufficient living?" he said icily. Ginny clasped her quill so tightly that it cracked. She was too angry to think of anything the say back. Smiling smugly, he looked down at her with an air of maddening superiority and walked away.  
  
~  
  
Back in the Slytherin common room, Draco was slightly annoyed. Ginny seemed to not like him at all, whereas it was common knowledge that any girl would be totally ecstatic if Draco so much as talked to them, and any girl would kill to sleep with him. Why wasn't Ginny fawning over him, like all the other girls did? This was quite bothersome, but she'd fall for him eventually. No girl could possibly resist the Malfoy charm.  
  
~  
  
Ginny stalked out of the library and headed toward the Gryffindor portrait hole. Draco Malfoy made her so mad, which was quite hard to do. No one had ever made her this angry before. She arrived at the portrait hole and muttered the password ('pixie dust'), quickly making her face vaguely friendly as she entered the Gryffindor common room. It was so nice not to have Hermione around to annoy her, but she missed Tina and Sarah too. The common room was almost deserted, except for Harry (who she used to have a crush on, but gotten over it) and Ron playing a game of wizard's chess and a few other people who had decided to stay for the holidays.  
  
"I'll play you next, Ron," Ginny said. She was actually rather good at chess; she had beaten Ron more times than he had beaten her.  
  
"Sure thing, Ginny. Where've you been?" Ron asked.  
  
"Library," Ginny replied and quickly changed the subject. "Are you guys going to Hogsmeade this weekend?"  
  
"Yeah, of course. Harry, your king's in check," Ron said.  
  
"Oh right. You going, Ginny?" asked Harry.  
  
"Yeah, definitely," she said. "You know what, I'm actually going to go to bed. Good night."  
  
"'Night," said Harry and Ron in unison.  
  
That night, Ginny had a nightmare. She dreamt that she had fallen through the ice in the lake, except that this lake was much bigger than the one at Hogwarts, it was huge. She tried to scream for help, but her mouth filled instantly with gelid water. She woke up with a start, pale and sweaty. In the morning she forgot all about her dream.  
  
A/N: Well, I hope you like this chapter. I think its rather crappy, but to each his own. And sorry I took so long to update, I write in spurts, so it could take forever for the next chapter. But it probably won't. Thanks to all my reviewers, I'll probably put thank-yous in the next chapter, when I get more reviews. :o) Oh, and if this chapter isn't long enough, sorry, I tried to make it as long as possible but it seems longer on Word than when I post it. I'll try to make it longer next time. And sorry about the cruddy chapter title, I couldn't think of anything good to name it. Thanks! ~Snolive~ 


	3. Which involves a game of poker

Disclaimer: If I owned the Harry Potter books, I would fix them so that Hermione was brutally slaughtered by the Russian Mafia and Ron would fall incorrigibly in love with a female iguana and elope to Kansas, where they would own a prosperous subsistence farm. Harry would smuggle illegal fireworks into Uzbekistan and Voldemort would abandon his destructive tendencies to become a monk in a peaceful abbey in the Himalayas. But, unfortunately, I do not own the Harry Potter books, J.K. Rowling does (hey, you wanted a disclaimer so I gave you a disclaimer).  
  
Ginny woke up with the bright sun in her eyes. She cursed it under her breath, why wouldn't it just go away and let her sleep? Ginny was feeling very morbid this morning, perhaps it was because Draco had put her in a bad mood, or maybe it was just her grumbling stomach. She was absolutely starving.  
  
Thinking murderous thoughts, Ginny got dressed and trudged down to the Great Hall. There, she saw people lining up to go to Hogsmeade, so she quickly ate a bowl of oatmeal and joined the line. A girl that she had been talking to in the absence of Tina and Sarah, named Celine, who was in 5th year also but in Ravenclaw, spotted her and strode gracefully over. Celine took private ballet lessons from Professor Sinistra, who had been a professional dancer, but retired when she turned 40.  
  
Celine had auburn, shiny ringlets of hair and icy grey-green eyes framed by long, dark lashes. She was thin, but not like a stick. She was a very good student and practically perfect; sometimes Ginny felt overshadowed by her. But Celine was quite modest about her qualities and whenever someone complimented her she would thank them and quickly change the subject; she didn't like to be the center of attention. Ginny respected her and they got along well with each other, Celine was the kind of person you just couldn't hate, even if you tried.  
  
"Hey Ginny! Where do you wanna go first when we get there?" Celine said.  
  
"How about the Three Broomsticks? I've been having a strange craving for a butterbeer for the longest time," Ginny replied. "Then we can go to Zonko's and pick up some stuff."  
  
"Sounds good. All right, line's moving, let's go."  
  
They told their names to Filch and after looking at them suspiciously, he let them pass. They climbed aboard the horseless carriage waiting at the Hogwart's gates and it rattled off.  
  
~  
  
Draco sighed. He was once again suck going to Hogsmeade with Dumb and Dumber (also known as Crabbe and Goyle). He had tried to lose them in the line, but they had found him again. Well, no matter, he'd try to lose them in Hogsmeade.  
  
The carriage jolted to a stop and Draco climbed out, Crabbe and Goyle following. They silently entered the Three Broomsticks and Goyle went to order three butterbeers. As Draco and Crabbe sat down, Draco spotted Ginny and a very pretty girl sitting at a table with Potter and Weasley. Weasley was gazing at the pretty girl so pathetically that Draco snickered derisively. Weasley heard him and cast him a baleful glare, but then grinned slowly and turned back to staring at the girl. Draco raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Uh, Draco, do you want whipped cream on your butterbeer?" Goyle asked.  
  
"Of course not, you dolt, do I ever have whipped cream on my butterbeer?"  
  
"Uh, well actually you did last time we came here."  
  
"Did I ask you?!" Draco said indignantly.  
  
"Well, uh, yeah you did," said Goyle.  
  
"NEVER MIND! No whipped cream on my butterbeer! You understand?"  
  
"Yes sir- I mean Draco." Goyle went back to the counter and grabbed the three butterbeers. He handed one to Draco, who took a long swig. He was taken aback by the sharp, spicy taste that flooded his mouth. This didn't taste much like butterbeer, but he liked it. Draco gulped the whole mug down and banged it on the table.  
  
"Mmmm, tasty! Much better than the usual crap they serve here," Draco said loudly. Everyone turned in their seats and stared at him; Madame Rosmerta scowled. Crabbe and Goyle looked at each other, puzzled. Then there was a sudden commotion at a table in the back of the Three Broomsticks and the Hogwart's students ran to see what was going on.  
  
"Someone's started up a Muggle card game!" said a passing Hufflepuff to his friend.  
  
Draco staggered over to the table, and sure enough, there was Lee Jordan's little brother, Elliot, shuffling a deck of cards.  
  
"Now, this game's called poker," Elliot said. He explained all the rules to the crowd that had gathered. "You have to bet with your own money, I don't have any poker chips. Sit down if you want to play."  
  
Draco sat down, as did Ginny and Dennis Creevey. They each produced a handful of coins from their pocket as Elliot delt the cards.  
  
"Ok, anyone wanna bet?" Elliot glanced around at everyone.  
  
"I'll bet, if everyone else is too scared. Five Sickles," Draco slurred.  
  
Everyone hesitated, but tossed five silver coins onto the middle of the table.  
  
"How many cards do you want, Malfoy?" Elliot asked.  
  
"I'll take one."  
  
"Ginny?"  
  
"Let's see...I'll have three," Ginny said.  
  
"Ok. Dennis?"  
  
"Two please."  
  
"All right! Any bets now?" Elliot said.  
  
"I'll bet three Galleons," Draco said and hiccupped.  
  
Elliot whistled. "Well, that's too much for me, I'm folding." he said and laid his cards down.  
  
Dennis tossed three gold coins in, but Ginny tossed five.  
  
"I'll raise you two," she said.  
  
"Better watch out, Weasley, don't go wasting money your family could sure use," Draco said snidely. He leaned back on his chair, but leaned back too much and fell over backwards. Everyone laughed heartily, and Draco's normally pale face reddened as he staggered back up and sat down. "I'm definitely folding," said Dennis.  
  
Draco glared at Ginny and said, "I'll see you and raise you two more!" He hiccupped again.  
  
"Ok, and I'll raise you three more," said Ginny calmly.  
  
"Fine!" he tossed the coins in. "And I'm not raising any more!" He laid his cards down, grinning. Elliot gaped. Draco had a full house: three Aces and two eights.  
  
Ginny smiled. "That's a great hand, but it's not good enough." She laid down her cards and everyone gasped collectively when they saw she had four Aces and a King. Draco blinked as Ginny raked in the coins.  
  
~  
  
Outside the Three Broomsticks, Draco was absolutely livid.  
  
"I can't believe she won! That little wench! How could she get a better hand then me? I had a full house! A FULL HOUSE!" Draco suddenly felt very dizzy and swayed. "Less go to Zonko's now, I wanna buy some stuff." He headed unsteadily toward Zonko's, Crabbe and Goyle following.  
  
Draco slapped various items on the counter in Zonko's.  
  
"How much izall this?" He asked the cashier, hanging onto the counter for support. The cashier raised an eyebrow.  
  
"That'll be one Galleon and sixteen Sickles."  
  
Draco took out the money, mumbling incoherently about ridiculous prices these days. He banged some money on the counter and stalked out of the shop, Crabbe and Goyle at his heels.  
  
Outside, Draco felt even dizzier. He tried to walk, but his head hurt so much and it was all he could do to keep his balance. Crabbe and Goyle looked at him uneasily. Suddenly Draco lurched forward and fell, face forward, spread eagle, into the snow.  
  
There were a few concerned looks, but most people burst into laughter as Draco tried to sit up, with a bewildered look on his snow-covered face. Goyle quickly helped him to his feet and they scurried off.  
  
~  
  
"That was brilliant, Ginny! What a great hand!" said Celine as they walked into Zonko's.  
  
"Thanks. My dad taught me how to play poker so I play a lot at home," Ginny said, checking the price of a Squirting Goblet (which, when you picked it up to drink out of it, squirted the contents at you).  
  
Ginny spent most of her recently gained large sum of money at Zonko's. She bought some last minute gifts for Harry and Ron, and then she and Celine headed back to the horseless carriages to be transported back to Hogwarts for the Christmas Eve dinner.  
  
~  
  
A/N: Well, here's another banal chapter for you. If you have gotten this far, stop reading immediately and proceed with your daily activities (stuffing potato dumplings with human flesh, etc.). If you insist to keep on reading, well, I'll try to make better chapters. I'm currently plagued with an extreme case of writer's block *writer's block comes in and clubs Olivia* ow. And my muse refuses to speak to me. Well, farewell, till the next chapter! 


	4. I dunno what to call this chapter

A/N: To the people who are reading this and actually enjoying it (very few, I'm sure), sorry it took so long for this chapter. I thought I was gonna abandon this story but maybe not. Oh, and by the way, I made a mistake. Ginny's a 5th year, thus making Draco a 6th year, obviously. Peace out!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.  
  
~  
  
Draco Malfoy awoke with the bright winter sun in his eyes and his head throbbing painfully. He cursed to himself as he started to remember yesterday's events. He'd made a fool of himself when he'd fell face flat into the snow. He'd skipped the Christmas Eve dinner and went straight to bed; he couldn't have faced the humiliation. Now, Draco wondered why on earth his head was hurting so badly, and why he'd fallen in Hogsmeade. Well, he thought, I started feeling a bit woozy after I drank that butterbeer..that's it! Somebody spiked my butterbeer!  
  
Draco sat up quickly and groaned at the pain in his temple. That was it. It must have been Potter and Weasley who'd spiked his drink.  
  
~  
  
Sitting by the fire in the common room, all the Gryffindors were laughing their heads off.  
  
"You put FIREWHISKEY in his BUTTERBEER?!" Dean Thomas said, roaring with laughter.  
  
Ginny grinned. "Yeah, but I couldn't have done it if Fred and George hadn't sent me the Firewhiskey," she said modestly.  
  
"But Ginny was brilliant, weren't you, Gin? Lucky Rosmerta had her back turned while you slipped in the Firewhiskey, huh?" said Harry, slapping her back cordially.  
  
"Yeah, Fred and George will be so proud! I'm glad Hermione's not here, she probably wouldn't have approved," said Ron.  
  
Ginny rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Well, I'm going to go outside for a bit, get some fresh air. Try not to tell the whole school about the Firewhiskey!" she chuckled as she climbed out of the portrait hole, knowing that by the time she returned the news would have traveled around the entire Hogwarts population.  
  
Ginny felt something very cold hit the back of her head as she strolled around the lake and wheeled around, spotting Draco Malfoy gathering up snow for another snowball.  
  
"What exactly was that for, Malfoy?" she said indignantly.  
  
"That, Weasel, was for putting Firewhiskey in my Butterbeer, hence humiliating me in front of everyone at Hogsmeade. And don't look at me like you don't know what I'm saying, all of Hogwarts knows," said Draco, and he threw another snowball at her. This time it landed right in her face.  
  
"Oooh, you asked for it, Malfoy!" Ginny heaved snow at him, Draco pelted her with more snowballs, and they continued in this fashion until they were both sitting on the ground, out of breath, their faces flushed.  
  
"Hey Weasley, I bet you're too chicken to go out and stand on the ice," Draco said, nodding toward the lake.  
  
"Watch me." Ginny strode onto the ice. "See? Easy. Why don't you come join me?" she asked slyly. When Draco hesitated, she said, "Or are you too chicken? Is poor baby Dwaco too scared to go on the-" But Ginny broke off when the ice beneath her cracked, and, with a look of utter terror on her face, she plunged into the freezing water.  
  
~  
  
"GINNY!" Draco ran onto the ice and stuck his hand into the hole  
through Ginny had fallen. He felt her hand, grabbed it, and dragged  
her out and onto the snow bordering the lake. She lay there,  
shivering, but conscious.  
  
"All right, Ginny, we need to get to the hospital wing. Can you walk okay?" Draco helped her to her feet and she took a few uneasy steps, leaning against him. He quickly unfastened his cloak and wrapped it around her, and her shivering subsided a bit.  
  
A few people scurried up to them and concernedly asked about Ginny. Draco assured them that she was fine and managed to push his way to the hospital wing. He explained what had happened to Madam Pomfrey and she gave Ginny a potion to warm her up and insisted she stayed in the Hospital Wing for the night. Ginny's mind became clearer, but when she looked around to thank Draco, she discovered that he'd already gone.  
  
~  
  
Ginny woke up to realize that she was still wearing Draco's cloak. She carefully folded it and hid it in her robes. She then returned to the common room the and was affronted by a distressed Ron.  
  
"Where have you been?!" yelled Ron. Ginny sighed and calmly explained what had happened.  
"And..er..someone saw me and helped me out of the lake and brought me to the hospital wing," Ginny finished, not wanting to explain why she was with Draco.  
  
"Ginny, you great prat! You just went and stood on the ice? That's really smart, Gin, really smart! You could have drowned if no one had been there, what were you thinking?" Ron raved.  
  
"Ron, calm down, she knows it was a stupid idea, alright?" Harry said, coming to Ginny's defense. She beamed at him.  
  
Ron sighed. "Well, come on then, the Christmas feast awaits us." And the three of them headed down to the Great Hall.  
  
~  
  
It was Saturday, three days after Christmas, and Ginny was just finishing dinner when the large doors of the Great Hall swung open and in came the students who had gone home for the holidays. Ginny spotted her two friends, Tina and Sarah, and waved them over to the Gryffindor table.  
  
"Hey Ginny!" Tina slid onto the bench next to her. Tina had blonde, sausage -like curls (which Ginny liked to pull and watch them bounce) surrounding her pretty face, along with bright blue eyes. Tina lived in America, Mississippi, to be precise; her wealthy parents had sent her to Hogwarts because they did not like any of the American wizarding schools.  
  
"How were your holidays, Gin?" Sarah said, sitting on the other side of Ginny. Sleek, chestnut-brown hair framed Sarah's slightly round face and she had rich brown eyes to match.  
  
Ginny shrugged. "Nothing special. Thanks for your presents, though. They were wonderful!"  
  
"Yeah, thanks for yours too," said Tina. Sarah nodded in agreement.  
  
"Well, I'll leave you two to eat, I'm pretty tired so I think I'll go to bed. G'night, then," said Ginny and she quickly left the Hall.  
  
~  
  
Someone was stomping around in the room Ginny shared with her fellow 5th years.  
  
"Hey Ginny, where's that red t-shirt of yours? I need to borrow it, I have no shirts to wear," came Hermione's voice. Ginny groaned.  
  
"In my trunk," she said sleepily. There was a snap as Hermione opened her trunk, and then a pause.  
  
"Ginny, what on earth are you doing with a Slytherin prefect's cloak?"  
  
Uh oh. Ginny sat up and Hermione held up the cloak, the Prefect's badge glinting. The only prefects in Slytherin were Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson, so Hermione could narrow it down to that.  
  
"It's nothing," said Ginny stiffly. "Put it back."  
  
Hermione swiftly put the cloak back and left without the shirt she wanted. Just perfect, Ginny thought. I'll have to get rid of that damn cloak before someone else finds it. So she put a Shrinking Charm on the cloak and stuffed it in her pocket.  
  
Just as Ginny was about to enter the Great Hall when Draco Malfoy came trudging out, apparently having finished his breakfast very early. He stopped when he saw Ginny.  
  
"Hi..er, Draco," Ginny said, allowing his first name to pass her lips. She took the cloak out of her pocket and restored it to its normal size. "Um..here's your cloak back."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"Thanks for letting me use it."  
  
"No problem."  
  
"And..thanks for, you know.." Ginny trailed off, suddenly realizing that Draco was quite close to her. "If you weren't there, I dunno what I would have-" Ginny broke off in shock as Draco moved his face close to hers and caught her lips in a kiss.  
  
When they broke apart, Ginny was breathless and she felt a blush creep up her neck. The corners of Draco's mouth twitched upward, and he moved in again..  
  
Unfortunately, this was precisely the time when Harry, Ron, and Hermione decided to finish their lunch and leave the Great Hall.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Oooh, look, its my pathetic attempt at a cliffhanger! If you're reading this, than you've made it through this chapter, and I congratulate you on your seemingly extraordinary resilience! But I encourage you not to continue reading this wretched story and go find a better one. Now. Oh, and the title is gonna come in sometime, don't worry. Peece! ~Snolive the mediocre~ 


	5. In which utter chaos ensues

A/N: Okay, I know that in a lot of D/G fics Ginny has Draco's cloak or some other form of clothing and gives it back to him and stuff, so if that's in your story, don't kill me because I don't mean to copy you.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

~  
  


           Draco, having his back to the trio, did not see them, but Ginny sprang back, staring over Draco's shoulder, and he turned around.  For a split second his face fell fearfully but he quickly regained his icy composure.  There was shocked silence for a few seconds as Ron's face began to turn vermilion.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL WERE YOU DOING TO MY SISTER?" shouted Ron, breaking the silence.  Harry and Hermione grabbed the back of his robes before he could lunge at Draco.  He made to pull out his wand, but Harry snatched it first.  

"Ron!  _Please_ calm down!  It's ok, me and Drac—_Malfoy _were just talking," said Ginny.  

"JUST TALKING?  IT LOOKED LIKE YOU WERE DOING WAY MORE THAN THAT, GINNY!"

           "So it was _his _cloak you had in your trunk!" Hermione said, out of the blue.

"YOU HAD HIS CLOAK IN YOUR TRUNK?" yelled Ron, looking utterly scandalized.  

"No—Ron—he was the one who helped me out of the lake when I fell in, and he lent me his cloak because I was cold," Ginny explained.  

Apparently, this was news to Hermione, because she said, "You fell in the lake?"

"I'll explain later," said Ginny.  She looked to Draco for help, but he was just leaning casually against the wall, watching the struggling Ron amusedly.  

"What on _earth_ is going on here?" came Professor McGonagall's sharp voice.  

"Oh—er—we're just having a little disagreement, Professor," said Ginny.

"Well, kindly have your disagreement elsewhere, you're making a horrible racket," and the Professor turned back to the Great Hall and shooed away the curious students looking out.  

"I think we'd better get back to the common room," Harry said.

"Yeah, you might want to give the Weasel some Calming Draught before he has a heart attack," said Draco, smirking. 

           "Shut up, Malfoy, before I let go of him," Harry retorted and he and Hermione dragged Ron toward the Gryffindor common room. 

"Thanks a lot for the help," Ginny whispered balefully to Draco.

"No problem at all," he said, still smirking.  Ginny clenched her fists and followed Harry, Ron and Hermione.

~

"So I gave him back his cloak and he just….kissed me," said Ginny, because evidently Ron was not buying the 'we were just talking' excuse.  "Come on Ron, its not like he assaulted me or something!"  
"He kissed you against your will!  I'd call that assault!" said Ron furiously.  

"Well…. it wasn't necessarily against my will….I mean, he didn't do it forcefully," Ginny said.  But why _had _he kissed her?  More than two-thirds of Hogwarts' female population went giddy at the sight of him (the rest of the girls adored Blaise Zabini, second only to Draco Malfoy in looks), he could take his pick from any one of those girls, most of them being much prettier than Ginny, anyway.  Perhaps….perhaps Draco was using her in some way….

~

Draco congratulated himself for his spectacular performance.  The little Weasel had undoubtedly fallen head over heels for him, and all it took was a little kiss.  _But you had your eyes close when you kissed her, _a little voice reminded him.  Yeah, so what?  _You've never kissed a girl with your eyes closed.  You must have really meant it._  I didn't mean it.  _Admit it, you liked it. _I didn't. Now leave me alone. 

           Unfortunately, rumors were now flying around Hogwarts about Draco and Ginny's "scandalous affair." Possibly the most ridiculous one was that the two secret lovers had been shagging in an empty classroom when Harry, Ron, and Hermione caught them.  

But this was necessary in the process of getting Ginny to like him.  Draco Malfoy was going to win those ten Galleons and prove Weasley he was wrong.

~

Ginny was sitting with her back to the fire, working on her Potions essay with Tina and Sarah.  

"Ugh, if Snape gives us any more of these ridiculously long essays to do, I swear I'm going to pull a Weasley," said Sarah (A/N: If you haven't read OOTP you wont know what that means, SO READ IT!).

Ginny stopped scratching with her quill and motioned for them to be quiet when she heard her name.  Ron and Harry were sitting in front of the fire, speaking in low voices.  

"…..just going to tell him to find another girl, because if he thinks he can go after Ginny like that he's got another thing coming to him," Ron said.

"Why don't you just tell him the bet's off?" asked Harry.

"No way, I don't want him to think I'm backing out.  Plus, I think I have a good chance of winning those ten Galleons, I mean, other than Ginny, who's obviously not gonna fall for him, he still isn't going out with anybody," said Ron.  

"What's this about a bet, Ron?" said Ginny coolly.  

"Oh, er, nothing, it's nothing," Ron said quickly.

"That's funny, because I thought I heard my name.  I must have imagined it.  I think I'll go to the library, see you." And she left, seething, intent on finding Draco.

           Sure enough, Ginny found Draco in the library, poring over his Defense Against the Dark Arts book.  Building up her courage, she went and sat down at the table where he was sitting.  He looked up and smirked evilly.  

           "Come back for more, Weasley?"

           Ginny smiled sweetly, ignoring this comment. "I was wondering, _Draco, _if you have a bit of a gambling problem?"  

           "Why do you say that, _Ginny? _Draco smiled back.  

           "Well, Draco, you were betting quite a lot that day in Hogsmeade, and if my sources are correct, you've made quite a large bet with a certain Gryffindor….." Draco stiffened and sat up in his chair.  "Yes, that's right.  From what I heard, you bet this Gryffindor ten Galleons that you could make a girl like you and go out with her.  Tell me, by any remote chance, might this girl be me?" Ginny stared straight into his smoky grey eyes; usually the eyes could give away anything about a person, but Draco's eyes remained silvery, limpid pools.  But although it did not seem it, Draco Malfoy was for once at a loss of words.  

           "By your stunned silence, I'd say I've guessed correctly," said Ginny.  So the kiss had not meant anything after all.  She was angry with herself for falling into that little trap, but also a bit hurt.  _No, of course I'm not hurt! I don't even like him!  _Ginny thought.  But she could not help noticing how elegantly his silvery-blond hair fell onto his forehead….._Oh, listen to yourself, Ginny!  You're becoming a romantic sap.  And you don't even like him, remember?_

           "Well, I won't be seeing you, then.  'Bye!" Ginny said almost cheerfully, and, wrenching her eyes away from Draco's, she left the library before she could notice anything else about his good looks.  

           Draco watched her retreating back, pondering.  Now he couldn't go for Ginny anymore…..or could he?  He was quite determined to show Ron he could charm the pants off any girl he wanted, and further embarrass him by succeeding in getting his own sister.  And anyway, now that Ginny knew about Draco and Ron's bet, it would be more of a challenge to make her like him, whereas it would be all too easy (not to mention boring) to capture the heart of some other girl.  Draco decided he was definetly up for a challenge.  _Oh, you don't know what you've got coming to you, Ginny Weasley_, he thought with a malicious smile and, slinging his bag over his shoulder, he left the library.


	6. In which the library is an overused meet...

A/N: Finally, I'm updating.  I couldn't before because I was on vacation, so a thousand pardons. *bows many times* Not much left to say here, so read away…

Disclaimer:  Don't you get the point?? I own nothing here, nothing!

~*~*~*~

"Draco?  Draco!  Are you listening?"

           Draco snapped out of his half-awake state at Pansy's shrill voice. "Huh? Oh, yeah…"     

           "Well, what do you think?  Isn't she weird?"          

           "Um...yeah," said Draco.

           "Plus, those freckles are really unflattering, and she could do with straightening her hair once in a while, and she's friends with that awful girl with the dreadful temper, what's her name, Sarah or something…"

           Draco blinked as Pansy chattered on.  When exactly had the conversation turned to Ginny?  Well, _he_ thought her freckles were quite cute, and her hair was fine as it was.  _What are you thinking, Draco?  Have you gone mad?  You need some sleep, you're delirious._

           "Listen Pansy, I've got to get some sleep.  You should too, you need your beauty rest," said Draco the smooth-talker (well, it was true; if anyone needed more beauty rest, it was Pansy).  

           Pansy giggled.  "You're right, Draco." She formed her lips into a pout.  "Won't you come tuck me in?"

           Draco almost gagged, but hurriedly recovered.  "You're a big girl now," he whispered smoothly into Pansy's ear.  He climbed up the stairs to his dormitory, leaving her to swoon.

~*~*~*~

           The portrait hole opened and Ginny's good friends Robbie and Perry strode in, faces flushed from their snowball fight with the impudent Slytherin third years who'd unwittingly challenged them.  

           "Man, we _creamed _those midgets," said Robbie, plopping onto a chair.  Robbie was gorgeous; he had neat brown hair, dark, beautiful eyes and a dazzling smile.  In fact, Robbie and Tina had large crushes on each other but were completely oblivious that their crushes were mutual, and they were both to shy to admit it anyway.  It made Ginny quite exasperated sometimes.

           "Yeah, those nancy's were crying for their mums when we got through with them!" Perry said excitedly.  Perry was quite handsome too, but his blond hair, vibrant blue eyes and innocent expression made him look more boyish.  Perry was hopelessly infatuated with Sarah, and Sarah milked his affection for all it was worth.  She knew Perry would do anything for her, so she made him useful.  Others might call it cruel, she called it fun.

           "Hey, where's Sarah?" Perry asked.  At that moment, Sarah stormed in, followed by Tina.  

           "Couple of Slytherins were whispering about some moronic rumor that you and Malfoy were snogging Filch's broom closet, Ginny.   I had to…_encourage _them not to spread nasty rumors like that," said Sarah.

           "She described in vivid detail how she would slowly and painfully torture them," Tina explained.  

           "Well, it gave 'em something to think about, didn't it?"

           Ginny smiled weakly.  "That's really weird, who would start a rumor like that?"

           "Probably Malfoy himself," said Robbie bitterly.  "He'd want to build up his reputation."

           "It's so stupid I'm amazed anyone would believe it," Tina said.  "It's not true, right Gin?"

           Ginny shook her head vigorously.  "Of course not!"

           "Yeah, I figured," said Tina.  Ginny thanked every deity she could think of that her friends believed her. 

           "Oh shit, I haven't done any homework!  Is the Divination homework for tomorrow?  'Cause I haven't even started and I _really _don't understand it…" Sarah put on her best distressed face. 

           "Here, you can copy mine!  And I can explain it to you, if you want," Perry said eagerly.

           "Oh thanks Perry, that's _so_ sweet!"

           Perry beamed hugely.

           "Hey Gin, do you have the notes for history of Magic?  I kind of fell asleep; Binns is so damn boring…" Robbie paused.  "Uh, Gin?  Ginny!"

           "Wha?  Oh…the notes…here…" she handed Robbie a piece of paper.

           "Ginny, this is your Potions essay.  You should go to bed, you're really out of it.  I'll get the notes from Tina."

           "Ok then…goodnight…" Ginny went upstairs and crawled into bed and fell into an agitated sleep, tossing and turning.

~*~*~*~

           "I mean _honestly_, its so annoying how all the girls just ogle him instead of paying attention to his lesson," Hermione said.  She was referring to the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Jack Adonis, and Ginny had heard this rant many times.  Professor Adonis was American, like Tina, and the girls adored his accent, not to mention his shaggy blond hair and overall sexiness.  He was only 18, so the 6th and 7th year girls clung to the thought that they might actually have a chance with him.  Ginny herself had had a crush on him in the beginning of the year, but had realized she was being an idiot and had quickly snapped out of it.  _Besides, Malfoy's hotter,_ Ginny thought before she could stop herself.  _Arg!  Stop thinking stupid things!_  She stuffed some potato salad into her mouth.

           "Don't you _looove_ him, Hermione?" Ron said with just a hint of bitterness.  Professor Adonis, being such a "chick magnet", was automatically hated by Hogwarts' male population.

           "Of course not.  I won't deny he's rather good-looking, but really Ron, he can't help it.  You needn't be so bitter.  I wouldn't eat that Ginny, it's loaded with calories."  Hermione indicated the meringue in Ginny's hand.  Ginny rebelliously crammed the whole thing into her mouth.

           "Ron does have a point, all the girls worship him," Harry said, looking darkly over at Cho, who was watching Professor Adonis eat as though it was something fascinating.  Robbie and Perry agreed solemnly, Perry looking over at Sarah who was also watching Professor Adonis eat.  

           "I know, and I can't pay attention in class because they're all giggling and passing silly notes," Hermione said.  Ginny didn't know why Hermione was so sensitive to these little noises; Ginny had no trouble paying attention in class.  

           Her eyes wandered around and involuntarily landed on Draco.  They made eye contact, then, to Ginny's dismay, Pansy Parkinson leaned on Draco's should and said something.  He laughed heartily and Ginny frowned.  What did he see in Pansy, anyway?  She was not jealous, of course, but Pansy was just so repulsive.

"I'm going to the library, there's some Charms homework I need to finish; I have it next.  Don't let me be late."  There was a chorus of curious "byes" as Ginny left.

~*~*~*~

           Draco saw Ginny leave and decided to follow her, keeping a distance behind her.  She must have been upset about the Pansy thing.  Perfect.  The idea was to make her jealous, of course. 

           Ginny entered the library and settled on a large beanbag in the back of the library and closed her eyes.  Draco waited a moment, then went and sat on the squishy beanbag beside her.  Hearing him, she opened one eye. 

           "What are you doing here?  Did you follow me or something?" Ginny snapped.

           Draco looked utterly surprised to see her.  "Why, no, of course.  Strange that I should meet you here."

           "What do you see in Pansy?" Ginny blurted out, instantly horrified at herself.  She was thinking very straight these days.

           "Nothing…she's really quite repulsive."

           Ginny let out a sigh of relief.

           "Relieved, aren't you?" Draco smirked.

           "No!  Why should I care about your stupid romantic interests?" Ginny said hysterically. 

           "Because you happen to be one of them."

           Before Ginny could speak, Draco closed the space between them and kissed her smoothly, pushing her so that she was on her back on the beanbag.  A tiny voice in her mind shrieked, _No! Don't do this!  Remember what happened last time?_

           _But I don't wanna stop, _Ginny thought. _He's too good a kisser…_

Draco pulled away.  Ginny looked at him, grinning stupidly.  

"You're good," she breathed.

"I know," Draco said and flashed her a stunning smile.  "You're not too bad either," he whispered and kissed her again, even better this time.  Ginny sank into bliss.

Suddenly, Draco sat up and Ginny was jerked out of her euphoria.  She pulled him in again and kissed him, but he did not return it.  Frowning, she opened her eyes and saw that he was staring at something behind her.  Ginny whipped around and stared too.  It was Sarah.

~*~*~*~

A/N: Isn't that retarded, how they get caught a second time?  I just felt like doing that.  Yes, it's clichéd.  And I realize there's now two Americans in Hogwarts, Tina and Professor Adonis.  I really shouldn't have made Tina American, but what the hell.  And Professor Adonis had to be American cause of the accent.  By the way, look up Adonis in the dictionary.  Hehe.   

Here are some thank yous to my lovely reviewers:

**emberghast: **Thanks!  Yeah, I like the cool and collective thing…wish I could be like that…

**Uglinessrox55: **Haha, great username!  Thanks for your reviews!

**kneh13: **Wow, that's deep, man…I never thought of that…who _is _to be felt sorry for? 

**Aelys: **Thanks so much for your review!

**sofia wanless: **Thanks for pointing that out, that was stupid of me.  I guess it was breakfast…I would change it but I'm too lazy. O_o Thanks!

**moween: **Random question…is your name Maureen? Hehe. Thanks so much for the review!!

**Sm00sh: **Yo Smooshkabibble! *chants* Thanks for reviewing, it meant ever so much to me *wipes away tear*  Yes, we shall do thusly! (God I love that phrase) And I get Draco, Fred and the 15 year-old Sirius Black!  And Hermione…yahahahah!  I shall deal with her…woot!

**BlondieChild:**  Yes, you are quite right.  I have made up my mind, Ginny's a 5th year…or should she be a 6th year?? AHH I dunno!  Thanks for reviewing, anyhoo. 

**Faxton: **Yes, as you can see I hate Hermione so I decided to make Ginny hate her too!  Ahh, its great to write, you can do whatever you want with people.  Thanks for reviewing!!

**Karina5: **Yo Lauren.  *backs away slowly* ok…longer chapters next time…thanks for reviewing!

**Maddy Bo: **My first reviewer!  And I owe it all to you!  I LOVE YOU MAN! *Maddy backs away* Sorry I hath not revieweth thine own fic.  I shalt, when thou freaking updateth it!!

Thank you all, I prostrate myself humbly to you (no, not prostate for God's sake).  I need you guys to tell me if I should make Ginny a 6th year or a 5th year….please let me know!  Oh and by the way, I shan't be updating until I get…*counts in head* at least 7 reviews!  *cackles evilly*  Hey, it's really not asking much, some people ask for at least 15.  Peace out!

~Snolive


	7. In which people are mortally wounded

A/N:  Well, I couldn't resist.  I had to update even though I didn't have my 7 reviews (huge thanks to Moween, Shaniele, Lauren, and Mariz—you guys rock my sock, as I am only wearing one at the moment!) but I thought, you know, 7 reviews is a bit much.  So here it is! 

Disclaimer: Ok this is the last disclaimer I'm doing, because I think you get the point that I do NOT own Harry Potter.  If I did, I would be so rich that I could buy my friends and make clothing out of my money.  

~*~

           Indeed, there was a great deal of staring.  Sarah stared at Draco, Draco stared at Sarah, Sarah then stared at Ginny, Ginny stared at Sarah (three people staring at each other is quite a remarkable thing to watch, you should try it sometime. Er, anyway, back to the story).  

_This is the second time I've been caught,_ Ginny thought dreamily_. I really must be more careful.  _She wondered vaguely what Draco thought about her psychotic friends that somehow found her everywhere she went.

           "What the—'' Sarah uttered such a long string of obscenities that it would be pointless to try to write them down. "—is going on here?"

           "Er—I—I had something in my eye," Ginny lied lamely.

           "Oh yeah, right.  A Gryffindor and a Slytherin—more specifically, a Weasley and a _Malfoy_—are snogging and you tell me you had something in your eye"

           "Sarah, please don't tell anyone!" Ginny pleaded, not even trying to find another excuse.

           To her relief, a grin broke out on Sarah's face. "I won't."  

           Draco, who had been watching the flustered Ginny amusedly, casually lay back with his hands behind his head.

           "We have to go to class now, Gin.  We'll talk later," said Sarah.  She glared at Draco, who smirked back.

           "You know, you don't have to follow the little Weasel around everywhere.  She _is _fifteen," he pointed out.  Ginny blushed hotly.

           "For your information, I was getting Ginny to go to class.  And I hope you're a damn good kisser, because we're late for Charms," Sarah spat.

           Draco glanced over at Ginny at Sarah's last statement, and she subconsciously nodded.  Her blush deepened and she rushed to follow Sarah out of the library.

~*~

           "Oh my GOD, Ginny!" Sarah burst out happily that evening in their dormitory.  "What the hell was that all about?" 

           "Well, he kissed me before when you guys were gone.  See, he was the one who got me out of the lake."  Ginny had already explained to her friends about the lake incident.  "And he gave me his cloak to keep me warm, isn't that sweet?  So when I gave the cloak back, he randomly kissed me.  Right there outside the Great Hall.  Ron and Hermione and Harry caught us, though.  You should have seen Ron, he was absolutely _mad_.  And that rumor you heard wasn't true but it was based on that."

           Sarah was listening to all this wide-eyed.  "So do you like him?"

           "Er…well, I suppose so…"

           "I can't believe it, Gin!  You have a thing for _Draco Malfoy!_"  Sarah danced around, out of Ginny's reach, chanting, "Ginny and Draco, sittin' in a tree, F-U-C—"

           Ginny caught Sarah and clamped a hand over her mouth.

           "Shut up!  You want the whole world to know?"  Sarah nodded.  "Well, that's not going to happen.  Plus, there's a downside."  Ginny explained the bet Ron and Draco had made.

           "So you think he's using you to win the bet?" Sarah asked.

           "I know he is.  I mean, why would he, a _Malfoy,_ like me?"

           "Dunno, but it seems to me that he does, the way you two were carrying on in the library," Sarah said slyly.  "But man, if he's using you I'll kick his sorry arse." 

           "Sarah, we were not 'carrying on'," Ginny said.

           "Yeah right, he was snogging you witless," said Sarah dramatically.

           "That's not true!"

           "You know it is.  By the way, is he a good kisser?" 

           "Yeah.  Unbelievably good." 

           "Lucky!  It's not every day you find an unbelievably good kisser." Sarah grinned.  "And maybe he'll ask you to the Valentine's Day Ball!"

           Ginny had forgotten about the ball.  Earlier that day, Professor Adonis had announced that Dumbledore had allowed a Valentine's Day Ball to be held.  There had been much commotion over this, and one girl had audaciously cried out, "Wanna go with me?" to the Professor. 

           "I doubt it.  And what would people say if they saw us together?" Ginny said.

           "Who cares what they think?  I bet it would be good for your image anyway, going with a hottie like that," said Sarah.

           "I'm sure.  And who do _you _want to go with?"

           "Well, if I had the choice I wouldn't go.  But since I have to, I'd definitely want to go Blaise Zabini.  He's hot, I'd like to polish _his _wand."

           "Ew, Sarah!"  Ginny giggled.  Sarah didn't have silly crushes, she merely separated the boys at Hogwarts into two categories: hot and not.  

           "Well, I know you want to ride Malfoy's broomstick," Sarah said, grinning toothily.  Ginny kicked her in the shins.

~*~

           It was about twenty minutes into the game, the score at Gryffindor: 40 and Slytherin: 30, and it was pouring rain.  It was a hard game; Ginny had to admit the Slytherins were playing quite well.  She could hardly see the Bludgers through the sheets of rain in time to hit them away.  Lavender Brown scored again, now it was 50 to 30.  _Come on Harry, catch the damn Snitch!_ Ginny thought, shivering.  Her Quidditch robes clung to her like sopping rags; she couldn't wait to get into something warm and dry.

           Suddenly, Ginny saw the blur that was Harry speed up.  At the same time, a Bludger hurtled towards her and she quickly knocked it in the direction of someone on the Slytherin team…was it a Chaser?  She thought so...  

           There was wild cheering as Harry caught the Snitch.  Ginny heaved a sigh of relief.  All of a sudden, the crowd's cheering turned to a low murmuring and indignant booing came from the Slytherins.  Ginny looked around and saw that evidently the person she thought was the Chaser that she had hit the Bludger at was in fact Draco, the Seeker.  _Oh great_.  

           He was clutching his nose, which was bleeding copiously.  He alighted to the ground and immediately ten Slytherin girls took his arms and marched him up to the castle.  

           Ginny landed and dismounted her broom.  A crowd of ecstatic Gryffindors instantly surrounded her.

           "Wow Ginny, you really messed him up!" Colin Creevey said delightedly.

           "Yeah, I heard Snape saying his nose was broken!" said Neville.

           Wonderful.  She'd gone and broken his nose.

~*~

           Monday morning found Ginny limping to the Hospital Wing from her Care of Magical Creatures lesson, her foot throbbing painfully.  Being stepped on by a Namair was not the most pleasant experience.  Especially as Namairs were winged panthers with razor sharp claws.

           "What's the problem, dear?" Madam Pomfrey asked.  

           "Er…I got my foot stepped on by a Namair," Ginny said.

           "Ah, that can be painful.  Just go in there and take off your shoe, I'll be right with you."

           Ginny sat on the bed and took her shoe off.  The claws had punctured the shoe as well as her skin very badly.  

           "Ginny."

           A voice Ginny recognized made her jump.  She looked around.  Draco was a few beds away, his nose hidden by a bandage. 

           "Draco!  I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hit that Bludger at you, I was aiming for the Chaser, I _know _you're not supposed to aim at the Seeker, oh, I feel so bad—"

           "Wow, slow down.  Even though you may have marred my appearance for life, I forgive you. Don't worry.  Your senseless attack on me may be justified," Draco said with a melodramatic sigh.  Ginny laughed.

           "Marred your appearance for life, right!  It's not _that _bad," she said.

           "Hey, I'm forgiving you.  Don't push your luck.  It was an agonizing healing process; apparently nose bones take a while to mend.  But I'm getting this hideous bandage off today, so you'll see how you've deformed me." 

           Ginny rolled her eyes.  Madam Pomfrey came in carrying a vial of puce colored liquid.

           "All right Draco, let's take this bandage off, shall we?" She slowly peeled off the gauze and Draco's nose emerged into view, flawless as ever.  Madam Pomfrey went to Ginny and, without delay, poured a few drops of the puce liquid onto Ginny's foot.  It stung for a second, then coolness spread through her foot.  She put her punctured shoe back on, thanked Madam Pomfrey and walked out of the Hospital Wing with Draco.

           They arrived in front of the Transfiguration classroom.

           "Well, this is my class, so I'll be seeing you…" Ginny trailed off.  She hesitated, then shrugged inwardly and placed a chaste kiss on Draco's cheek.  To her surprise, his arms encircled her waist and he pressed his lips against hers.  _Yaaaaay,_ Ginny thought as little fireworks went off in her mind.  Then Draco started kissing her neck; soft, tickling kisses.  If she had been able make her brain work she would have done a happy little jig.  But that would be embarrassing and uncalled for.  _HELLO, Ginny!  You have class!  _Ginny mentally screamed with frustration.  She reluctantly pulled away.

           "Sorry, I have to go to class, I'm already late.  Bye," Ginny said.  She smiled at Draco and entered the classroom.

~*~*~  
  


A/N:  There ya go.  Ahhh, Draco is so yummy it makes me insane.  He is truly sex on a stick, as a wise person once put it.  If he was real, I would dive on him and rip his clothes off.  Well, how would you act in the face of OVERWHELMING HOTNESS?  You know you'd do him.  

           I've already written most of the 8th chapter and I must be…er, _inspired _to update quicker if you leave me a nice, fat review… or if you don't want to review you could throw in some cash and I'd be sure to update snappy-like.  

           Well, here I take my leave, so groove out!  ROCK ON, MY JOVIAL AMIGOS!


	8. As heads is tails just call me Lucifer

A/N: I'm finally updating! I'm proud of myself. It's been almost two years! Ahh I'm such a bad person. Ok, I'm retarded but let's pretend like everyone at Hogwarts already knew about the Valentine's Day Ball because it was in the letter with their school supplies. Enjoy!

"Brilliant!" Blaise exclaimed after Draco had told him what had happened with Ginny. "She'll be falling over herself to go out with you! And she knew about the bet?"

Draco nodded. Blaise chuckled.

"They're so easy to manipulate. Well, most of them. I met this Muggle chick once…"

Draco pondered and Blaise launched into his story. Was he really manipulating Ginny? Draco shook himself. He didn't care, of course, and why should he? As the Sorting Hat had once said, "_Those cunning folk use any means to achieve their ends." _ And he was doing just that. Besides, it wasn't as if he actually had _feelings _for her. Not at all. What a ridiculous idea.

"You know, Draco, you should as the little Weasel to that stupid Valentine's Day Ball. If her brother saw you two together, he'd have to admit you won the bet, right?" Blaise said.

"That's the best idea you've had all day, Blaise," Draco said.

Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas burst into the Gryffindor common room.

"Listen up everyone! We have just broken into the Slytherin locker rooms and taken Draco Malfoy's broom!" Seamus proclaimed.

Ginny looked up to see Dean waving around a sleek Nimbus 2003 and her eyes widen. There was a split second of silence in the common room, followed by an eruption of cheering. Dean set the broom on a couch and everyone gathered round, including Ginny. She had to see what they'd do.

"Now folks, probably every single one of you in the room has been bullied, mocked, taunted or insulted by Draco Malfoy." Of course. Nothing would happen before Seamus made a speech. "And to tell the truth, we're sick of it, aren't we?" The crowd cheered approvingly. "So today, are we going to do something about it?" The crowd collectively yelled "Yeah!"

Dean cut in. "Ladies and Gentleman, we are going to hex Draco Malfoy's broom!" The crowd roared, then went instantly silent as Seamus raised his wand.

"Spasmodium Scopa!" (A/N: I know, lame, but scopa does mean broom in Italian. It was the closest I could get to Latin) Seamus shouted. The broom shined vibrant turquoise for a few seconds. The Gryffindors applauded wildly.

"Now we've got to put the broom back in the locker room. Everyone be at the Gryffindor-Slytherin game tomorrow and see Malfoy finally get his comeuppance. Thank you, ladies and gentleman!" Seamus and Dean took a bow and crawled out of the portrait hole.

Ginny whacked the Bludger to the ground with such extreme force that when it hit the ground it made a sizeable dent. She grinned, proud of herself. Not many people could do that.

Ginny's other teammates had left when their morning practice was over, but Ginny had stayed, intent on sharpening her skills. Now, Ginny decided, was the time to quit, as she had lost most of the feeling in her arm. Just as she was about to point her broom downward, Draco Malfoy came zooming up on his Nimbus 2003. Ginny sighed. She couldn't decide if she hated Draco or not. She knew he was using her for that silly bet, but just maybe…_don't be ridiculous, Ginny, _she thought to herself. She decided she was furious at him. Ginny Weasley did not respond kindly to people using her.

"What do you _want, _Malfoy?" she asked, gritting her teeth. _Wait a minute…his broom is jinxed! _Ginny remembered. She tried to stifle her snigger, to no avail.

"What's so funny, Weasley?" Draco asked.

"Oh, nothing, nothing…"

"Why don't you tell me now or…" in one lightning move, Draco's snatched the wand that was protruding from Ginny's pocket. "…you don't get your wand back."

"Give it back, Malfoy! Before I pound you with this bat!"

Before Ginny could stop him, Draco whizzed through the air toward the Forbidden Forest. Ginny followed, but her broom couldn't nearly match the speed of Draco's. Draco continued until he was above the exact middle of the forest and, with a grin, dropped Ginny's wand.

"NO!" Ginny yelled. As she flew toward him, Draco's broom started twitching. Then it started having flat out spasms. Draco hung on tightly, completely bewildered. The broom shot out from underneath him and sped toward the castle, and Draco fell into the Forbidden Forest.

Ginny swore. After hesitating for a second, she sped downward on her broom into the middle of the forest. She alighted softly and dismounted her broom. Ginny looked around and found Draco not far away, laying on a bed of what appeared to be soft moss. She went over to him. He seemed dazed, but generally unscathed. By his feet was her wand, mercifully unbroken.

Ginny did not understand Draco at all. One minute he was kissing her and the next he was stealing her wand. Frankly, it aggravated her.

"Smart, Malfoy, really smart. They should move you up to seventh year for that little trick," Ginny said sarcastically.

"I just fell about fifty feet and that's all you can say?" Draco answered.

"Oh please, you don't even have a scratch on you. Besides, you deserved it for taking my wand."

"Maybe I did. But what I'd really love to know is who the _hell _jinxed my broom?"

Ginny snickered. "Language, Malfoy…"

Draco narrowed his eyes. "Well, at least this didn't happen during the match."

"Too bad it didn't," Ginny mumbled under her breath.

"What's that?"

"Nothing! Now get up and let's get out of here before we get expelled." Ginny picked up her broom. "I'm not sure if this will hold both of us, it hardly even holds me. Hop on." They both mounted the broom and floated up a few feet very slowly. Suddenly there was a cracking sound and the broom broke under them. Ginny landed heavily on her behind.

"Owww…damn broom! Reparo!" The broom's two pieces flew together. Ginny turned to Draco. "Let's try this one more time." They mounted the broom and hovered for a few seconds, then the broom broke once again. Ginny sighed and repaired it again.

"Obviously that broom won't hold both of us. We'll have to walk back to the castle," Draco said.

Ginny looked around. The forest seemed to have shifted completely, nothing looked the same.

"Um…how?"

Draco pulled out his wand. "The Four Points spell. It'll point us north."

"Yeah, but is Hogwarts north?" Ginny asked doubtfully.

Draco shrugged and said, "_Point Me._" The wand spun around and settled on what was hopefully the direction to the castle. Draco started walking quickly so that Ginny had to jog to keep up with him.

After what had to have been an hour, Ginny broke the silence.

"My feet hurt."

Draco said nothing. A few seconds later:

"I'm cold."

Draco's eye seemed to twitch. Ginny grinned, knowing this was annoying him.

"I'm hungry."

Draco took a deep breath.

"I'm tired."

Draco whirled around. "Will you _please _shut up?"

"Sounds like someone's grouchy…didn't get enough sleep, Drakey Wakey? That's funny, I used to have a ferret and _it _slept all the time…" Ginny had gone too far. Reminding Draco of the day Professor Moody had turned him into a bouncing ferret was an insult to his pride.

"Listen, _Weasley,_ if you don't shut your mouth about that my father can get your father fired from the ministry just like _that_," Draco said, snapping for emphasis

"Empty threats, Draco? You've sunk to a new low," Ginny retorted. Draco just narrowed his eyes and kept walking. He knew it was true. Ginny felt a little remorse, but only a little. They trudged on for what had to be hours, because it was getting very dark, and Ginny was getting nervous. Who knew what came out at night in the forest? Ginny stepped on something that made a squelching sound and she let out a high pitched squeak. The something turned out to only be a mushroom. It let out strange purple smoke that filled Ginny's lungs. She started coughing violently and sneezing.

"Ugggh," Ginny groaned. "I must be allergic to that stupid mushroom…" Well, this was turning out just great. Ginny knew how she must be appearing to Draco right now; her nose as red as her hair and her eyes swelling up. Draco was, in fact, sniggering silently.

"Shut up!" Ginny said. "You're not making it…any…better…" Ginny suddenly felt extremely drowsy. She fought to keep her eyes open and stumbled a bit.

"What's wrong with you, Weasley?" Draco asked.

"Just a bit…tired…" Ginny sat down heavily on the mossy ground.

"No time to sleep now, we've got to get back to Hogwarts," Draco said as he tried to drag her up. After tugging at her limp body for a while he realized she was fast asleep. Perfect. He poked her with his wand repeatedly, and when this generated no results, he sat down beside her sleeping form. He felt quite lethargic all of a sudden too. It must have been that mushroom, Draco thought, as he sank down next to Ginny and drifted off into a deep sleep.

Ginny wrinkled her nose as she felt something soft tickle it. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at about five little creatures leaning over her with huge eyes and noses. She shrieked and sat up. She'd been sleeping with her leg slung across Draco. Well, at least he wasn't awake.

The creatures began poking Ginny with pointy, painful fingernails. She tried to swat them away but they seemed unfazed.

"Get _off _me!" Ginny cried. The creatures just tittered more. One crawled up and tweaked her nose; another pulled her hair, causing Ginny to cry out in pain. Draco was now awake and trying to fend off the ones that were crawling all over him.

"_Incendio!" _He shouted. A flame burst out of his wand and all the creatures let out high squeals and ran away.

"What the hell were those?" Ginny asked.

"Goblins. They're afraid of fire. Annoying little buggers."

"It's almost dark; we must have slept for hours!" Ginny exclaimed.

"The jinx on my broom must have worn off by now," Draco said, and climbed on his broom. Ginny did the same and they both shot out of the treetops and sped toward Hogwarts.

They alighted on the front steps of the Great Hall. They peered inside and saw that dinner had already begun.

"Okay, you go in first, I'll wait a few minutes, then I'll go in," Draco said. Ginny nodded.

"Right." Ginny strode in and took her usual seat next to Sarah and Tina.

"Ginny! Where have you been all day?" Tina asked, obviously distressed.

"Well, you'll never believe what happened. I was staying late after Quidditch practice and Dra—Malfoy comes flying up on his broomstick and takes my wand, and then his broom starts freaking out, and he falls right into the Forbidden Forest."

"Oh that's right, his broom was jinxed! Too bad it didn't happen during the match tomorrow," Sarah said, looking genuinely disappointed.

"Then I stepped on some mushroom and for some reason it made me and Malfoy fall asleep for hours. We woke up just a few minutes ago."

"Wow. Weird. Did anything…_interesting _happen between you and Malfoy?" asked Sarah when Tina's back was turned. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"No. We hate each other, remember?"

"Sure. You hate each other so much that you just had to snog his brains out in the library, right?" Sarah grinned.

Ginny threw a pea at Sarah.

Ginny emerged from Transfiguration with Sarah and a flushed Tina, who was excitedly telling them that Robbie had asked her to the dance (she'd tried to tell them during class but had chosen not to incur Professor McGonagall's wrath).

"Hey Weasley!"

Ginny looked around and saw Draco, who was leaning coolly against the wall, and Blaise Zabini, who looked utterly bored.

"Have a date for the ball yet?" Draco asked. Ginny shook her head, her stomach fluttering.

"Wanna go with me?" Ginny was amazed at how nonchalant he could be.

"Um, sure," said Ginny, blushing.

By this time, Tina's mouth was wide open and Sarah was trying to suppress giggles. Blaise looked at Sarah.

"Well, since you're all alone I guess you can go with me," he said.

"What a privilege," Sarah replied, her voice not showing any signs of enthusiasm.

"Wear something nice for a change," Blaise said and he and Draco sauntered away.

Tina blinked several times in a row.

"Ginny, did Malfoy just ask you to the ball?" she asked incredulously.

"Er…yeah," said Ginny.

"As in the Valentine's Day Ball?"

Ginny nodded. Sarah jumped at the chance to explain.

"I walked in on them snogging in the library and he was, like, on top of her, and remember that so-called rumor we heard? Completely true."

"Sarah's exaggerating. When I fell in the lake, Draco gave me his cloak and when I gave it back he just kissed me and Ron saw. Contrary to popular belief, we weren't snogging in Filch's broom closet. But get this…" Ginny proceeded to tell Tina about the problematic bet.

"In fact, I can't believe I just said I'd go to the ball with him. What was I _thinking_?" Ginny lamented. "We hate each other!"

"Oh, don't be stupid, Ginny, it's obvious you loooove each other," Sarah said.

"Not true!" I protested.

"Ginny, that is _so _cute!" Tina squealed. "I never would have guessed. Okay, the next trip to Hogsmeade is this Saturday, so can get more eyeliner…"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Tina, that stupid ball is in years and you're already getting ready?"

"Two weeks, Sarah, it's in two weeks," Tina said gravely.

A/N: So what did you think? Yeah I know, pretty boring chapter. I promise there will be more sexiness in the next chapter, though. I worked sooo hard on this chapter though, its one of the longest I've ever written. Perhaps I write better at two o'clock in the morning. Please review! 


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